The Heart's Choice by Joyce Livingston

Author:Joyce Livingston
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Steeple Hill
Published: 2005-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

Beck rose from his place on the sofa. “Hello, Jewel.”

“Oh, Beck! It’s you.” Tavia smiled. “It’s good to see you.”

James stepped toward him and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Beck phoned right after we got home and I invited him over. He was concerned about you. I was just telling him it’s still difficult for you to speak with the soreness in your throat from that tube, but you’re managing quite nicely.”

Annie helped Tavia to the sofa and plumped up a pillow to brace against her sore ribs. “Our girl has had a good nap, and I was just about to get her a nice hot bowl of cream of potato soup. We’d love to have you join us, Beck.”

Beck shook his head and held a palm up between them. “No, ma’am, I couldn’t. I don’t want to impose.”

“Impose? You’re not imposing, Beck. This is the housekeeper’s day off so Annie fixed a big pot of soup. There’s plenty for everyone,” James chortled. “You don’t know my wife very well. She doesn’t take no for an answer. You might as well plan on staying. She’ll never let you out the door without feeding you.”

“James is right, Beck,” Annie told him with a winsome smile. “I’m not about to let you go away hungry. It won’t be anything fancy. We’re only having soup. Dr. Stevens said to keep our Jewel on soft foods for a few days.”

“Don’t let Annie fool you with that not-anything-fancy line, Beck,” James added with a wink toward his wife. “Her homemade potato soup is one of my very favorites.”

Beck grinned his silly, bashful grin, the one that made Tavia want to laugh. There was something special about the man. He was different from any of the men she’d ever met. But considering the few chances she’d had to meet nice regular-type men, anything further with Beck would never happen. Not with the rut her life had been in.

Beck rubbed his hands together expectantly. “You’ve talked me into it, sir. Nothing warms your innards like a hot bowl of soup.”

“Then it’s settled. Give me five minutes in the kitchen to set the table and we’ll have lunch.”

“I—I could help.” Tavia started to rise, but Annie hurriedly put a hand on her shoulder to stop her.

“You stay right where you are. We brought you here to nurse you back to health, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do.”

Everyone turned as the front door opened.

“Hey, is that potato soup I smell?”

James shook his head with a grin. “Dad, we never know where you are, the way you come and go all day long, but let us put food on the table and, somehow, you find your way home.”

“Which of your ladies were you with this morning, Grandpa?” Annie asked, her eyes sparkling as she headed for the kitchen. “Three of them have already called today asking for you. I left their names and numbers by the phone.”

James turned to Tavia. “You’ll get used to the phone ringing.

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